You can showcase your experience and business to more than 65 million people across the world including executives from all Fortune 500 companies using LinkedIn to network while you sleep. That’s the networking benefit of a LinkedIn profile.

LinkedIn: Network while you sleep

According to LinkedIn, a new member joins their online network approximately every second. Whether you are a professional looking for new potential business contacts, a currently un-employed or under-employed jobseeker, or a college student getting reach to launch a new career, you need a LinkedIn profile. As with most social networking tools, there is no subscription fee to join and you can set up a profile in a matter of minutes. The real benefits of LinkedIn are in direct proportion to the completeness and quality of your profile and to the level of your LinkedIn activity. LinkedIn is a social networking site for professionals. Put your best business persona to work here.

Setting up your account

Use your real name

This name should be consistent with your other professional online listings – and should be unique if possible. Attorney Jeffrey D. Carpenter uses this version of his name to distinguish himself from the other 600 Jeff Carpenters on LinkedIn.

Add a photo

People often remember faces and forget names. Your photo should be a professional-looking headshot. A cropped vacation photo featuring you in sunglasses and hawaiian shirt is probably not the best image for you on LinkedIn (unless you are a travel agent specializing in Hawaiian vacations)

Complete your profile

Don’t just list your position titles and company name. Add in details. Think of LinkedIn as your 24/7 online
resume and business promotion tool. Use positive terms and list your accomplishments – without excessive bragging and selling.

Set controls for maximum networking

LinkedIn allows you to set controls for the information you share with others. For maximum networking, set these controls to “everyone.”

Update your status

LinkedIn has an update section similar to Facebook. Tout your business accomplishments here, using active verbs. Rember your audience: LinkedIn is designed to further your business and career goals — share projects, presentations and new client signings — don’t share your family vacation, dinner plans or personal blunders.

Now what?

After your profile is close to 100% complete, decide who you want to connect with. I treat LinkedIn as my online Rolodex. If I’d take your business card and put it in my Rolodex, I’ll add you as a connection. LinkedIn makes it easy to start connecting to people you already know. You can import your email address database from Outlook, Yahoo, Gmail and other sources. Click on the “Add Connections” tab on your profile page for details. As you become more active on LinkedIn, you’ll send even more invitations.

More info

Check out the LinkedIn video:

Spend some time building a top-notch profile on LinkedIn that tells your story. Join groups. Make some new connections. Have fun. And once you’ve set up your profile, it will continue to network for you — while you sleep!

Check out my LinkedIn profile at www.Linkedin.com/in/KarenEmanuelson and send me an invitation to connect. The power of LinkedIn comes from your connections — and their connections.

8 Easy Ways to Personalize Social Media

We’re all human. We respond when we believe someone is reaching out to us personally. Especially in today’s mass email marketing and social media bulk posting, a message that speaks to an individual is rare – and usually appreciated.

Here are 8 easy ways you can personalize your social media posts and tweets:

MOST IMPORTANTLY: respond to all posts and tweets from others that mention your organization with an acknowledgement comment as simple as “Thanks”, “Glad you enjoyed the session”, or” How can we help fix the situation?”

The Power of Connections

We have yet to find an organization that can’t benefit from using LinkedIn. Success stories abound. According to a whitepaper by Hubspot, the majority of companies who are on LinkedIn have acquired at least one customer from LinkedIn.

How you can benefit

Creating a LinkedIn profile that is optimized using keywords is the first step. Recently, Reciprocate created an optimized LinkedIn profile for a client who was just starting a foreign language based consulting business. In less than two weeks, our client signed her first contract — with someone who had discovered our client’s profile via LinkedIn’s Search feature.

Making connections is the next critical step. With only 16 connections, LinkedIn says you are just two degrees away from more than 1000 professionals.

While we believe in the power of connections, we don’t encourage anyone to become a L.I.O.N. (LinkedIn Open Networker — someone who tries to accumulate as many LinkedIn connections as possible.) Instead, just as in traditional networking, reach out and connect to those you know, like, and trust.

As you grow your number of connections, you will find that others also reach out to you to connect. You never know who might just know someone who is looking for someone with just your skills and talents. And, because you are so well connected on LinkedIn, they may just reach out to you and strike up a virtual conversation that turns into new business opportunities or a new career path. That’s the power of LinkedIn connections.

Business Card Marketing

Turn Business Cards into Business Dollars

You probably have at least one box of business cards sitting in your desk. Here are a few simple ways to turn those business cards into business dollars.

Set a weekly goal for the number of business cards you will give to leads. If you give a card each time you receive a card, you can easily track the progress toward your goal. As an added bonus, when you get back to the office, invite these new contacts to connect with you on LinkedIn.

To help meet your distribution goal, keep a supply of business cards in your wallet, car, briefcase, gym bag, computer case, and desk. Be sure to use business card holders so your cards stay crisp and clean.

Provide family, friends, neighbors, and satisfied clients with a few cards each so they can more easily pass along a referral and your contact information.

Depending on your industry, product and service, consider posting cards on bulletin boards in local coffee shops, community centers, libraries, colleges, and even Laundromats.

Think outside the box and use guerrilla marketing techniques.
A yoga instructor we know has successfully marketed her services by periodically visiting local book stores and leaving her business cards inside yoga and health-related books.

Your business cards can be one of the most productive marketing collateral you use. Consider them the seeds of your business, and scatter them widely.

5-Step Business Card Marketing

Increase the Power of Your Networking

The practice of swapping business cards at networking events is a great way to make an introduction and to leave a lasting impression. Learning to use these cards effectively can increase the power of your network.

Step 1: Ask those you meet a simple question: “Do you have a card?” Chances are, they will offer you their card and ask for your card in return.

Step 2: Always have a supply of your business cards with you, whether attending a networking event or even a kids’ school function. You never know where you might meet someone who can increase the power of your networking.

Step 3: After the event or at the end of the day, review the cards you’ve collected. Jot notes on the back of the cards to remember key information about each person.

Step 4:Spend the next few days building your network by inviting each of your new contacts to connect with you on LinkedIn. Personalize the connection invitation with a note about your previous conversation and mention the event where you met.

Step 5: As your new network accepts your LinkedIn connection requests, be sure to send them each a quick email to thank them for joining your network.

As for the physical cards, use a Rolodex or simply bind with a rubber band and a note indicating the date and location where you obtained the cards.

With more than 100 million people on LinkedIn, how can you stand out?

Differentiate yourself using these three easy techniques:

1. Personalize your connection requests

Modify each LinkedIn connection request. Instead of the standard “I’d like to add you to my professional network on LinkedIn” email, tell your prospective connection why you want to connect. Some ideas: where you met, what you like about her LinkedIn profile, how you know her, and, most importantly, why you want to connect.

2. Respond to connection requests

When you receive a LinkedIn connection request, respond promptly. Read the profile of the person sending the request. If you decide to connect, send a quick follow up email immediately after you accept the connection. LinkedIn makes it easy. Once you’ve accepted the invitation to connect, click “Send a message” to start your new relationship on LinkedIn.

Thank your new connection for her connection invitation. Comment on something you know about her — either from her profile or her background. By clicking “Send a message,” you are continuing the email string from the connection request and have the ability to scroll down to see the sender’s original message, making it easier for you to personalize your response.

If you don’t know why she reached out to you, ask! Here is the response I received when I asked Jeff Hill, a recent LinkedIn connection of mine, why he reached out to me:

What made me want to link with you…first thing that got me interested was your last name. Its kind of rare and I know a guy in Dallas with that name. Then, I looked at your profile. Wow! Very nice! 16 people have recommended you. Very, very nice. Incredible, really. Your use of the Summary section–awesome. Tons of info; plenty of white space.

Wow! How cool is that? Thanks, Jeff! What a great way to start our LinkedIn relationship. Now instead of being just another connection, Jeff stands out because he took the time to differentiate himself.

3. Offer to help

Instead of asking for introductions to someone else’s contacts, be proactive. Reciprocate. Share what you know. Offer to help. Reach out to your connections — new and old — and ask them who would be a good connection for them.

Virtually introduce your LinkedIn connections who might have synergies. Both parties will be grateful to you for your thoughtfulness and will reciprocate freely.

Networking online through LinkedIn shares many of the attributes of traditional, face-to-face networking. Spending a few extra minutes to differentiate yourself in the sea of LinkedIn users will go a long way toward your success.

If you have not already jumped on the LinkedIn bandwagon, it’s time. LinkedIn just announced it has reached 100 million members, and one new member is joining every second. LinkedIn members, representing all Fortune 500 companies and millions of entrepreneurs, in industries from aviation to zoology, join LinkedIn for the common purpose of networking.

LinkedIn 100 Million Campaign

To commemorate its membership milestone, LinkedIn launched an interactive ad campaign featuring 100 of its members, including Karen Emanuelson, owner of Reciprocate LLC. Reciprocate’s success can be traced to Karen’s active participation in LinkedIn groups. She was selected for this campaign based on her 140-character success story: “I kick-started my marketing consulting business through LinkedIn groups.” Karen is currently a member of 58 groups on LinkedIn and serves as manager of two of these groups, Social Media for the Blogger and LinkedMinnesota Entrepreneurs.

Click on the ad image above to check out the other 99 success stories. While you’re there, be sure to click on the blue “Submit Your Story” button for your shot at being included in the next LinkedIn advertising campaign.

Contact Karen today to find out how you can take advantage of LinkedIn and LinkedIn groups to kick-start your company.

6 Quick LinkedIn Tips for Success

As the premier site for professional networking, first impressions are extremely important on LinkedIn. Here are six quick tips to help ensure you make the first impression you want.

Use a consistent nameThe same name that appears on your business cards should be used as your LinkedIn name. With that said, if you have a common name like “Bob Smith,” you might want to use your formal name and add your middle name “Robert Logan Smith” so your contacts can find you easily.

Include a professional headshot
You don’t need to go to a professional photographer. A cropped headshot from a family photo will work, just make sure the uploaded image portrays you best. If a picture is worth a thousand words, be sure your LinkedIn profile has a photo – and make sure the photo you upload is saying the correct 1000 words about you.

Maximize the impact of your professional headlineThe text under your name on your LinkedIn profile is your Professional Headline and serves as your introduction. Edit this field to reflect your areas of specialization and to enhance your professional branding and image. “Attorney at Bob, Bob, and Tom, LLC” doesn’t have nearly the impact of “Partner at Bob, Bob and Tom, LLC; Registered Patent Attorney practicing in electronic, laser, and software arts” or “Business & Legal Solutions Strategist | Intellectual Property | Risk Management | Litigator | Investor | Philanthropist”

Create a custom URL
LinkedIn allows you to create a custom web address for your Public Profile. When editing your profile, simply follow the prompts. Directing someone to connect with you at a specific address is much easier than asking them to “find” you on LinkedIn. For example, there are four Karen Emanuelsons on LinkedIn. But I’m the only one with the custom URL: www.LinkedIn.com/in/karenemanuelson

Customize your website listingsThis tip is easy and shows that you know how to use LinkedIn. Edit the “Additional Information” section of your profile. At the “Websites:” option, choose “Other.” A new field appears allowing you to enter custom text before the website link. Be specific. Enter your company name, blog or even your Business Facebook page. For example: Reciprocate Blog or Reciprocate on Facebook.

Complete your profileLook for the box on the left of your profile for LinkedIn advice to guide you toward this 100% completeness goal.

These six quick fixes will improve the first impression of your LinkedIn profile. Do you have any additional tips?

Keywords linked to LinkedIn success

Recently, I received a phone call from a local HR rep asking me to interview for a position — a position that paid $100K. I hadn’t applied and, at the time, I wasn’t even looking for a job! Turns out, the HR rep plugged a few keywords into LinkedIn’s search function and my profile came to the top! It wasn’t a good fit, but the moral of the story is that people are using LinkedIn to research and find potential employees and potential business partners based on words used in their profiles.

Problem Solver with Extensive Experience as a Results-Oriented, Innovative, Motivated Team Player. Proven Track Record in a Dynamic, Fast-Paced Entrepreneurial Environment

Unfortunately, this is about 50 characters too long to fit in the 120-character limit of a LinkedIn professional headline, but imagine what could happen if your professional headline included keywords that are actually being used to find people, products and services in your industry. These are the same keywords that are used in Google, Yahoo, and Bing searches everyday.

In addition to using keywords in your LinkedIn professional headline, Summary and Specialties and Employment title and descriptions, use these keywords throughout your website and online directory listings for even more impact.

Share button available for LinkedIn

It’s nice to share — and LinkedIn now offers an easy way for visitors to your website and recipients of your email marketing campaigns to share your website pages, products, and services with others on LinkedIn.

What’s the advantage?

The LinkedIn Share button is powerful. It provides an easy way for others to post your company information as a personal update, as a post into a discussion group, and as an email sent to individuals. With more than 85 million members on LinkedIn, this new Share button is a “must have” for every small business marketing effort. According to LinkedIn, just one individual with 345 connections has potential connections of almost 6 million individuals!

How does it work?

Here’s what your readers will see when they click the LinkedIn share button:

4 Places to use the LinkedIn Share Button

Add it to your website

Include it in email newsletters

Add it to your email signature

Add it to your blog

If you are comfortable adding html code to your website, a visit to the LinkedIn publishers’ site provides three options for “share buttons” and instant access to the html code. It took me less than 5 minutes to add the share button to my WordPress-based website as a widget. Check it out (above right, under the “search” box). If you prefer, your web developer can add the Share button easily. Either way, make sure you include adding the LinkedIn Share button to your marketing “to-do” list.

If you are a small business owner or a member of a nonprofit organization and aren’t active on LinkedIn, you probably should be. Check out these additional blog postings for other tips for maximizing your impact on LinkedIn.

With more than 75 million members on LinkedIn, how can you stand out from the crowd? Start by telling your story in 120 characters that have people wanting to know more.

Which 120 characters?

Your LinkedIn “Professional Headline.”

Your professional headline follows you everywhere on LinkedIn — when you post a status update, when you join a group, when you add or comment on a group discussion, and when you connect to someone else on LinkedIn.

In addition to being displayed prominently under your name at the top of your LinkedIn profile, your professional headline pops up every time someone hovers over your name or photo anywhere on LinkedIn. LinkedIn uses your current position title as your professional headline unless you change it. To edit your headline, click the “edit” button next to your name when you are on the “Edit My Profile” page.

Which person are you more likely to want to connect to and network with?

Jeff Perry who piques your interest with his professional headline or David who just lists his title?

It probably wouldn’t surprise you to find out that Jeff has 500+ connections on LinkedIn and David is struggling to reach 50.

The key to an effective headline is to be creative, yet professional. Create a headline that has LinkedIn members wanting to know more about you, your company, your interests, your passion.

Using consistent keywords throughout your LinkedIn profile will help you rise to the top in LinkedIn keyword searches. Creating a captivating professional headline will be to your benefit every time someone hovers over your name on LinkedIn to find out more about you.

How creative can you be in 120 characters?

Here’s a few more curiosity-piquing professional headlines that stand out from the crowd that have I’ve come across on LinkedIn:

Once you have completed all the sections of your LinkedIn profile and believe your profile represents the best “you,” it’s time to engage the LinkedIn community.

This is the first in my series of LinkedIn Strategies. With the goal of increasing your professional network through LinkedIn, over the course of the series I will share a number of tips including profile settings, the importance of connections, activities and networking, joining groups, and how to use special features to help you stand out and be noticed.

Set these three simple settings properly for maximum exposure and impact.

Member Feed Visibility displays a condensed version of your recent network update activity including status updates, connections, and recommendations. To see your recent activity, click on “View Profile.” A list of your activities appears on the right side of your profile.

The Profile Updates setting will let your connections know when you have received a recommendation, made a change to your profile (including adding a new position and changing a title as well as editing changes). Your connections will also know when you choose to follow a company.

Status Updates are key to engaging your connections. Status Updates are an easy way to tell your connections what you are working on — the final touches to a major project, research you are conducting, meeting preparations, and seminars you are attending. The Status Update area very valuable PR real estate that can be used to promote you, your image, your products or services and your company.

In keeping with the rule for all social media, this is NOT the place to sell. This is the place to share what you know and what you are working on. Subtle self-promotion is acceptable.

Begin each Status Update with a lower case action verb.

Include links, if appropriate, to your website, an article that highlights your point, registration information for a seminar you are conducting, or a presentation you gave.

In addition to being displayed in the top portion of your profile, Status Updates are also sent to your direct connections and posted on your direct connections’ home pages under Network Updates. This feature is similar to the way Facebook posts are displayed on your Friends’ pages. Connections on LinkedIn are also able to comment on your Status Updates.

Recommendation: Turn these three settings to “Nobody” and “No” when you are initially creating and editing your profile. When your profile is complete, turn the settings back to “Everyone” and “Yes.”

The power of LinkedIn starts with the proactive use of the Member Feed Visibility and Profile and Status Updates. Checking these three settings is an easy first step to ensure you receive maximum exposure for your time and activity on LinkedIn.